Turning a direct drive washer on its side?

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mrsmokey

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Alrighty, nobody skewer me please!

I don't get it.

I bought what i am pretty sure is a 1987 whirlpool thin twin, a lt5000xsw2. It came out of a condo and looks minty, Ill post pictures when i get it home. I like the look of the control panel too.

Anyway, The appliance place it is at refuses to let me leave with it if i put it sideways in my full size van. They tell me oil will run all over the place and ruin the machine, in addition to to other things (not specified).

This is a direct drive machine, I see no support behind what they are saying.
here are the parts diagrams:
https://www.appliancepartspros.com/parts-for-whirlpool-lt5000xsw2.html

Now, i do understand if it gets shipped a long distance on its back it can be hard on the suspension and the kinda rough on the tub bearings, but that is not what they are saying. The fellow mentioned oil, and certain destruction just from tipping it over.
15 miles sitting over the axle inside my beuville seems fine after looking at the parts, especially if i take it easy. If necessary there seems like there should be a way to shim it to not wreck the suspension.

What are yall's experienced opinions.
Thanks!
 
The gear case has a small hole in it at the top (if memory has not failed me). Leaving it on its side will cause oil to drip out which will effect the break and clutch very negatively- both will slip to the point of being useless. In addition to having to clean those up, you will also have to take the gear-case out in order to refill it.

Don't know how you could cover the hold. In this case I would listen to the appliance dealer.
 
I have transported way too many direct drive machines in my Jeep laying down to count....

mostly on their front or sides, one or two on their back.....right side preferred...

and NEVER had any oil leak out....or any issues from such an event....

the only stacked unit that can some apart for transport has been a Maytag that I know of...

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The little hole in the transmission cover is an air vent for some purpose.  A new transmission I installed several years ago was shipped with a seal over the hole with instructions to remove it upon installation, before operation.  There could conceivably be a slight drip from there or from the seal in the cover at the spin drive pinion but unlikely it'll run "all over the place" as the seller is saying.  Any dripping would run down on the transmission cover much moreso than into the brake or clutch.

Another hazard of side-transport if a strong jostle occurs is the transmission slipping out-of-position from sitting properly on the skate plate and/or the skate plate shifting askew.

I've never dealt with a ThinTwin.  The transmission may be oriented with the motor toward a corner (left front?) due to space restrictions rather than directly toward the front.  Laying the unit on the back or the right side may minimize the potential for oil leaks.

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Shipping A 24" TT On Its Side

It won't hurt a thing, the air vent hole is in the middle of the transmission cover so oil can not leak out unless you turn the machine completely upside-down LOL.

The 24" FFs do not have a skate plate style suspension so no damage should occur.

If there is any oil leaks from side transport the center cover seal is worn out and if there is any suspension damage from side transport the suspension was already broken.

John L.
 
Thankyou everyone for your replies, I'll see if i can talk them into letting me take it in the van. They won't deliver anything that is a used item. They offer a 30 day warranty, which they will yank i am sure if i shove it in the van. It is not much of a warranty anyway, maybe i can convince them to hook it up, so i can check function before i haul it out of there, but it may not be worth their time.

Washerlover, thankyou, was the support between the units pretty stout? It looks it, but i wonder how much caution i need to exercise when I tip it over. It should be stout, but i don't want to buckle it or anything dumb like that.

Barry, we love the beauville, other than it being loud since it is a unit body, it is especially loud with the heavy lugged studded tires on it, or maybe maybe all the noise is it complaining because of the salt. I threw a picture in of it.

mrsmokey-2018120913555009944_1.jpg

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Nice looking set!
I hope you can get it home safely.

And thanks for the picture of the van! It's a beauty!
Do you have the rear seats too?
Where I work, they used to have a fleet of base model G-10 cargo vans.
Six cylinder, automatics with basically no options.
Aside from being like driving an Easy-Bake oven in the summer, I loved them!
I believe 1995 was the last year for them.

Barry
 
Wow, I've never seen one of this in this vintage, with the black control panel. You will be very happy with this machine. My grandpaents had the Kenmore version which was identical except it had a DA agitator. It did a great job.
 
Hi Matthew, I just threw the thing in the back up my pick up on its side, and it all worked out fine. The one thing I do recall with this unit was that the washer tended to spill water over the side of the fill plume when filling. It was easily corrected, and the Thin Twin worked great! Thanks for the pics, mine was of the same vintage...nice find!
 
One Of The Very First DD 24" TTs

I hope you realize that the machine you just purchased is 31 years old, these are good machines but it better be a really low use machine if you expect much life out of it, Question, how old did they tell you it was when you bought it ?

 

John L.
 
John L.
Thankyou, excellent point, and I appreciate the concern.
Hopefully i did not make a mistake.

No, they did not tell me how old it was, but i looked at the serial number and knew it's age before i committed, and took the gamble.
They said it came out of a ski condo and that is it, and while I generally am wary of these folks, the machine speaks for it's self and i tend to think that it probably did in fact come out of a condo and was used a few weeks out of a year. If i hate the thing, I have watched them on CL, and know i can move it for the price i paid. If it has an issue, I should be able to fix it.

It is old and holds a lot of question marks, but:

It looked and felt nearly new, and from looking at parts diagrams it is a simple, reliable, and serviceable design. I do not see why i could not service it for the next 10 years to keep it up, but maybe i am wrong. This will be a support washer and dryer for our house, and the Miele the primary.

Personally I try to run appliances like I do cars, I have a few old ones I rotate in and out service as needed. That allows me to afford the time to fix them myself.
 
some do, some dont....

on some machines it may leak out...depending on how it is transported...

some wringers will leak oil....

belt drive Whirlpool/Kenmores can leak at times....

even if its a FLer, not so much of leaking oil, but some recommend a certain way they must me positioned for safe travel...suspension and components inside...

there have been cases on a GE fiterflo, of laying on its side during transport, that the transmission boot may pop off.....sometimes we secure the suspension so that chance can be reduced...

but none the less, never hurts to ask first....
 

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